GameStop Defends the Pre-Owned Games Market: “We Believe That it’s Good for the Industry”

August 6, 2012Written by Alex Osborn

The used game market has been getting a lot of flack from publishers and developers lately, as the rise of pre-owned games is taking more and more of the profit away from those that actually make the games.

However, Gamestop president Paul Raines doesn’t believe that it is a detriment to the industry, claiming the quite opposite. “We are not ashamed of the pre-owned business and in fact we believe that it’s good for the industry” he told Gamasutra.

Raines went on to elaborate on that statement, saying:

We’re really not cannibalizing new game sales. That’s a common misconception. So my answer to developers is that we are driving growth in a category that needs to grow.

We think there’s a real lack of awareness as far as how it’s good for the industry. The transparency you’re seeing from us is because we want people to know about it, helping people understand what we’re trying to do for the industry.

Providing consumers with more affordable options is certainly something many gamers can get behind, but the terrible trade in values and less than stellar markdowns leave much to be desired.